Gaming and boat game

We see the good and the bad, and everything in-between. Sorting through the Android Marketplace of over 300,000 apps is no small task, but we’ve been steadily working towards finding the best stuff for your family, and giving you a breakdown of the cool and the drool (our version of the good & bad) on all types of apps, not just games.

All of the apps that we review have to pass a precursory inspection before we will even consider them for our review process. This means that we only review apps that have some relevance to families, aren’t malicious, and generally meet a certain level of quality.

The Best of the Best

But even though all of the apps that we review meet these initial criteria, there is still a huge difference between an acceptable app and a truly enjoyable app that surpasses our expectations.
It’s always a treat to stumble upon an app that is really well made, entertaining, engaging and has some sort of depth to the interaction that it provides. You can always tell when there has been an extra bit of effort and love built into an app, and (coming from people who use and review a bunch of different apps) it’s definitely appreciated.

These are the apps that stand apart from the others, they are some of Famigo’s favorites, and we think that your family will absolutely love them too:

Top Paid Apps

Cut the Rope – $0.99

A beautiful game with adorable characters and a gorgeous user interface. It plays off of really interesting and intricate physics puzzles. If Pixar had made a blockbuster app, this would be it. Although this app has been popular on Apple’s app store for a while, it is new to the Android Market.

Drawing Pad – $1.99

There are a lot of drawing apps out there, and a bunch that are supposedly designed especially for kids. From what we’ve seen, they’re mainly lackluster. (Meaning they look like bad rip-offs of Paint, with design queues taken from the 1980s, not that we don’t love the 80’s, but these apps aren’t even trying to be retro!) This drawing app, however, is fantastic. It’s clean, easy to use, and has a ton of choices for different colors and materials

X Construction – $1.43

We like this one so much that we keep on playing it, practically everyday, even though we’ve already reviewed it. It’s challenging, sometimes frustratingly so, but that’s what keeps us coming back to it over and over again. There’s something about being responsible for a train completing its journey that’s oddly satisfying.

Nano Panda – $0.97

There’s one word that describes this app: adorable. It’s another physics-based puzzle game, but it manages to be delightful through its game play, user interface, and excessive use of pandas. In our eyes there’s no such thing as too many pandas, so this app gets the Famigo seal of approval.

Top Free Apps

Peggle

This is a brightly colored, easy to play app that is fun for everyone. It has the capability of being multi-user, which we love. (It’s always more fun to play together!) There’s an especially nice touch built into the game, win a level and you’ll see what we’re talking about.

Angry Birds

This one really goes without saying. When an app has its own line of kid’s toys and a movie in the works, you
know there’s got to be something to it. What is that something? Probably the great graphics, cute characters, challenging game play and wide audience appeal. We’d happily pay for a version without ads, but that isn’t an option yet.

Shift Lite Puzzle Game

A really challenging puzzle game with a deceptively simple black and white look. Each level provides new (and progressively frustrating) challenges that can all be solved with four simple actions, figuring out which of the four and in what combination is the problem.